


How to Catch a Magizoologist - 10 Easy Steps

by unclassified_senpai



Series: We live in a strange and magical world, a little crazy yes, but still magical [3]
Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magic, Baekhyun is suffering from dimple attacks, Elemental Magic, Eventual Romance, Fairy Tale Elements, Fluff, Guest appearance from Seulgi, KrisHo - Freeform, M/M, Magical Creatures, Magizoology, Modern Magic, Mythical Beings & Creatures, OCs - Freeform, Pining, Pixies, Romance, Shape Shifters, Too much pixie dust, Witches, XiuChen - Freeform, being oblivious, but its not bad, exo members are sweethearts but honestly need to also chill, its very slight, nature sprites, the slightest bit of angst, unrequited love but not really
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-07
Updated: 2018-12-07
Packaged: 2019-09-13 12:04:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 15,406
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16892250
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unclassified_senpai/pseuds/unclassified_senpai
Summary: Byun Baekhyun, despite being part-pixie, part-nature sprite, tapped in more with his pixie side, this made him picky about who he hung around with because he could sense the personalities of their magic.Some people had messy magic, chaotic and uncaring, volatile almost and it made Baekhyun bristle with instant annoyance. Some people however had smooth clean magic. Clear and concise and Baekhyun liked that.‘What did I miss?’Baekhyun can’t really feel his own magic- it wasn’t a thing that pixies could do. Other pixies could sense other pixies of course, which is why Kyungsoo raises one amused eyebrow at him from other side of the table and no, Baekhyun does not need that, thank you.Yixing sits next to him, dimples on display.And like a cat smelling catnip, Baekhyun isgone.Yixing’s magic was sweet.There was no other way of describing it.Sweet, gentle, smooth, deep. Like hot chocolate, sprinkled with cinnamon. Or like aged wine, deep and rich and headily sweet.And Baekhyun loves sweets. His dentist could testify to it.‘H-hey.’Smooth Byun, real smooth





	How to Catch a Magizoologist - 10 Easy Steps

Pixies in general have a strong affiliation with all sorts of magic. They are basically the mood-rings of magic, detecting and channeling magic around them, their strength growing alongside the potency of magic they were exposed to. This made pixies valuable in the field of security and protection despite their naturally small and fragile built. And it was in this very field of profession that Byun Byungwoo met and fell in love with Choi Yerin, a nature sprite who was a fierce activist and advocate for the protection of magical wildlife conservation. By “met” Baekhyun means his dad had to arrest his mum who was protesting in front of the government buildings covered only in paint with the words “ _SKIN ME I DARE YOU”_ painted over.

His dad said it was destiny and his mum said it was an intricate plot to stop her from stripping in public. Either way they were both happily married and were co-founders of one of the largest conservation organizations to help secure and protect endangered magical species.

Baekhyun was the youngest of two- his older brother had inherited more of his mother’s nature and more of his father’s mellow personality. Baekhyun had however inherited more of his father’s nature, and his mother’s spunky personality. This got him into a lot of trouble as a kid, and his dad would always fondly blame his wife for it.

Baekhyun did tap in more to his pixie side, being picky about who he hung around with because he could sense the personalities of their magic. It was odd to consider that magic had personality but it did. While magic was definitely a part of someone’s entirety and part of their _soul_ – Baekhyun could very well read a separate personality.

Some people had messy magic, chaotic and uncaring, volatile almost and it made Baekhyun bristle with instant annoyance. Some people however had smooth clean magic. Clear and concise and Baekhyun liked that.

People like Minseok, a witch and a shifter. His magic was clear and strong- just like moonlight. His familiar was the same, though a little unstable because of how new his magic was. But more often than not, Minseok’s magic would shape and guide Jongdae’s, and they would balance each other- like complementary colours. It was beautiful and Baekhyun liked the two of them a lot.

Lu Han’s magic appealed more to his nature sprite side- something ancient, a little dark, but very resonant with the magic of the earth. Lu Han’s magic, to Baekhyun, felt a bit like how you would feel entering a church or a holy establishment. Lu Han’s personality however, was complete opposite, being extremely down-to-earth and downplaying the fact that he was in fact descended straight from actual _gods_ of Nature, capital “N” and all.

Kris’s magic was bright and strong, leaning a little towards something that could be chaotic but still well contained. Baekhyun is always a little scared of the Dragon spirit that made Kris’s magic. Shifter’s were different and with such a powerful and ancient form like the Dragon, Kris’s magic was more than just a little too much to handle. But Kris himself, despite his dark and glaring eyebrows and ridiculous height, was probably the softest and most awkward person Baekhyun has ever met. Besides, it was fun running and jumping up onto him. It was like climbing a tree, reminds Baekhyun of his childhood. Nice.

Junmyeon was another favorite- but also tricky. Alchemists honed their magic in a way that constantly shifted and (pun intended) alchemized into different forms. So while Junmyeon generally had a mild and easy going personality, his magic was a little unpredictable. Baekhyun thinks it’s funny that Kris and Junmyeon were together- it seemed quite the match that the Dragon would approve of the Alchemist, who were known primarily for their abilities in transmuting gold.

When Baekhyun first met Chanyeol, it was like their magic just clicked and they instantly formed a friendship. Chanyeol was interesting in the sense he wasn’t _born_ with magic- but rather _blessed_ with it. The Spirit of Fire, no less, had blessed him and so the sorcerer-in-training was happily dabbling slowly into the world of magic. A little like rune-scribes, sorcerers needed an item or element to (no pun intended) ignite their magic. So Chanyeol had to rely on flint or preserved coal. Previously, Fire-Blessed used phoenix bones, a rare and very _very_ illegal procedure of procuring bones of the rare magical creature. It was a cruel method and Baekhyun was lucky to have met a phoenix when he was young, his parents having rescued one from one such illegal attempt.

So instead Baekhyun liked to put some of his magic, allowing whatever flint or coal Chanyeol would carry, to last a little longer, or stabilize his enchantments.

Kyungsoo was also a sorcerer-in-training and just like Baekhyun, was half-pixie, half-nature sprite. So Baekhyun found instant kinship with the young man. His magic felt a lot like his fathers, mellow and smooth, almost like sun-warm honey. Which was why Baekhyun liked to cling to Kyungsoo despite the latter’s protests. Then Chanyeol would also join in, practically lifting the both of them up in his long arms.

Baekhyun has always found the magic of Elves, Dryads, and Nymphs fascinating. They weren’t just magical-folk, but were actual Beings born within magic, not out of it. They were rare too, and most often times disliked each other. Which is why the combined friendship of Jongin, Zitao, and Sehun was really odd and wildly fascinating to Baekhyun. Jongin was an extraordinarily beautiful young man, being the son of a River Siren and an Elf, his features were (pun intended) magical. It also caused a lot of issues because being a siren, his words could be hypnotic and cause hysteria on the slightly weaker mind. So it wasn’t unusual to see Jongin running for dear life as hoards of admirers chased after him. His magic was bright and bubbly, excited but shy. And Baekhyun often had the urge to protect him and frequently helped him hide away from his admirers.

Zitao too had the same problem but he welcomed it, saying “ _Who am I to deny my beauty to those who want to behold it?”_ and smiled graciously at his admirers. But despite his fierce features, sun-kissed skin, dark brows, near-white hair, and electric blue eyes, Zitao had a magic was probably the softest and purest that Baekhyun has ever felt.

Sehun on the other hand was literally a storm, being the son of Wind Dryad, he was lanky, tall, and barely made a sound when he moved. He also had an unnerving habit of appearing out of nowhere at the most inconvenient times imaginable. But he too was gentle and his magic was light and soothing. Baekhyun guesses that all of these similarities was what attracted the 3 to each other, forming a friendship no one ever thought was possible.

Baekhyun laughs at a joke Jongin makes that honestly no one really understands, but the way his magic peaked, curled as though tickled with sheer delight, makes Baekhyun smile, almost cooing as he laughed.

‘What did I miss?’

Baekhyun can’t really feel his own magic- it wasn’t a thing that pixies could do. Other pixies could sense other pixies of course, which is why Kyungsoo raises one amused eyebrow at him from other side of the table and no, Baekhyun does not need that, thank you.

Yixing climbs over carefully, sitting down slowly as he arranged a lump in his arms.

And like a cat smelling catnip, Baekhyun is _gone_.

Yixing’s magic was _sweet_.

There was no other way of describing it.

Sweet, gentle, smooth, deep. Like hot chocolate, sprinkled with cinnamon. Or like aged wine, deep and rich and headily sweet.

And Baekhyun loves sweets. His dentist could testify to it.

‘H-hey.’

_Smooth, Byun, smooth,_ Baekhyun rolls his eyes at himself. And no he doesn’t need Kyungsoo’s other eyebrow to go up because Baekhyun is very aware of the fact that he’s letting off pink glittery pixie dust.

_Dad, why. Of all the things I could have inherited and have no control over, why the p i x i e d u s t._

It was a sort of defense mechanism, pixie dust. It could be distracting, blinding, and generally overwhelming. And for full-blooded pixies like Baekhyun’s dad, they could control pixie dust and use it to create shields like bubbles of shimmer around them. It wasn’t very strong or anything but it was pretty handy, especially if you could control it.

So every time Baekhyun was spooked, or surprised, or in general, just around Yixing, pixie dust just rolled off of him in obnoxious waves.

It wasn’t as though Yixing _scared_ Baekhyun. Far from it.

He’s just generally lucky that Yixing doesn’t seem to think much of it. Or at all…either way, Baekhyun is lucky because everyone most definitely understands why Baekhyun reacts like this every time Yixing so much as smiles his an _noyingly perfect dimpled smile oh Fates save me_. Even _Jongin_ knew.

It really doesn’t help when Yixing looks around and brushes off the dust from Baekhyun’s shoulder, eyes sparkling with fascination as though it’s the first time he’s ever seen it. And damn pixie-dust being the fucking reactive pieces of shit that they were, turn pink and glitter even more under Yixing’s touch.

Baekhyun tries desperately to reign it back in but fails. Again.

‘What’s that?’ Junmyeon asks, distracting everyone’s amused attention away from Baekhyun’s sparkly embarrassment to the bundled creature in Yixing’s arms.

‘Oh- this is a baby jackalope! Isn’t he adorable?’ Yixing coos.

Now Baekhyun might be hopelessly head over heels for Yixing but some creatures the magizoologist calls “cute” are far from it. But this time around he’s actually right.

It looked like a regular brown rabbit but Baekhyun knows this gentle creature. He can identify the small nubs on their heads, already forming horns that when they are fully grown will resemble antelope horns. They were energetic but mostly gentle creatures and Baekhyun is already cooing.

‘He’s beautiful,’ Baekhyun says genuinely, reaching over to gently stroke the sleepy creature between the horns. ‘Are you taking him for a walk?’

‘Yeah! Our professor wants us to observe their behavior for the next month,’ Yixing explains, ‘So I thought I’d introduce you!’

Baekhyun knows he’s smiling a bit too happily, that amused look Junmyeon just gave him wasn’t necessary.

‘Does he have a name?’

‘I wanted to name him Baekkie, but it turns out he already has one,’ Yixing looks forlorn.

Baekhyun could die right now and he’d be happy.

‘So what is his name?’ Kyungsoo asks, keeping a respectful distance between himself and the creature. Not that Kyungsoo is actually afraid; he just had a not so great experience with a creature Yixing had called cute and ended up getting drench in said cute creatures snot. It took Kyungsoo 3 showers to be free of the snot ( _‘I don’t care if it’s medicinal it’s disgusting!!’)_.

‘Gambit,’ Yixing frowns.

‘It’s a cute name,’ Jongin smiles down at the furry lump before reaching in to stroke at the smooth fur as well.

‘But he looks like Baekhyun,’ Yixing argues and maybe Baekhyun _needs_ to die or something. He knows the dust is a little of control judging by the way Kris is suddenly hack-coughing.

‘I should get going!’ Baekhyun suddenly announces, getting up with a shower of sparkling dust. ‘Bye!’

Baekhyun hears a few of them calling after him but he’s power-walking away.

It’s dumb, because he’s done this so many times now it almost feels scripted. Like some really bad hook to a bad comedy show. Character A appears and Character B loses his shit.

Every single time.

It’s been 5 years and Baekhyun thinks he should have gotten over this _at least_ 3 years ago.

But nopes.

Here he was, mass producing shimmering glitter, his magic clearly haywire and all over the place.

‘You know, I think I can make something for you that will help you with all this dust,’ a voice announces.

Nearly jumping out of his skin, his pixie dust glaring in an alarming fashion briefly before fading away when he realizes it’s only Junmyeon and Kris.

Baekhyun shakes his head.

‘It’s fine. It doesn’t always happen- I just- I just wasn’t prepared that bunny was really cute-‘

Junmyeon and Kris both give him identical unimpressed expressions.

‘You guys have to stop this twinning thing it’s wrong when you’re visual polars of each other.’

‘Baekhyun-ah,’ Kris frowns a little, ‘Just tell him- this isn’t good for you. Or, move on-‘

‘I can’t,’ Baekhyun hisses, ‘You think I haven’t tried?’

Junmyeon pats Kris on the arm once, both to placate and admonish.

‘Why won’t you just tell him?’ Junmyeon asks gently, ‘It’s been years- and I really don’t think it would effect your friendship in anyway.’

‘I just-‘ Baekhyun sighs heavily, pixie-dust disappearing.

He starts walking again, Junmyeon by his side in an instant.

‘Yixing-…he’s so dedicated, and devoted to his duty and studies- I just-‘

‘You think it’d be better if he wasn’t so obsessed with the creatures?’ Kris asks, his strides are slow and smaller than usual, to keep an easy pace for Junmyeon and Baekhyun.

‘No,’ Baekhyun shakes his head. ‘It’s sweet- I would never want him to change.’

Junmyeon smiles at him fondly, reaching over to brush off excess dust.

‘But you feel like you don’t have a chance?’

‘I don’t have a chance _regardless_ ,’ Baekhyun emphasizes. ‘His magic is so gentle, so sweet and pure- I don’t…I don’t think we’d mix well.’

‘That’s not-‘ Junmyeon begins before Kris snorts and cuts in by adding, ‘-that’s a whole lot of bullshit, Yixing is not exactly _pure_.’

‘That’s not what I meant by purity hyung,’ Baekhyun sighs, ‘It’s- you can’t feel it the way I do- it just won’t work.’

Junmyeon eyes Kris with disdain before saying, ‘Then why is it that Yixing always comes and tries to find you?’

‘I’m his friend,’ Baekhyun shrugs.

‘So am I- in fact, for _ages_ ,’ Kris snorts, ‘But he never comes looking for me when he finds a furry thing after deciding that it looks like me.’

‘I don’t want him to pity me, or look at me differently- you say he won’t change, but _I_ will,’ Baekhyun declares, ignoring Kris’s statement. ‘Things _will_ change because it will change for _me_ \- not that I would hate him for rejecting me. It’s just- I don’t want to lose this guys.’

Junmyeon gives him an understanding look, but Kris is studying him with a look too serious that makes Baekhyun _very_ suspicious and apprehensive.

They talk a little more after that, and they don’t bring up the topic again. When they part ways, Baekhyun sighs out, feeling tired and drained. It was exhausting. You couldn’t just _not_ like someone. Especially when their magic was so pure, strong, and gentle.

Sometimes, Baekhyun could conjure up vague memories, or dreams, or even just colours, to describe someone’s magic.

It wasn’t often- and it wasn’t very detailed or clear.

His mother’s magic, to Baekhyun, was a dew covered field of hemlock early in the morning before the sun rose.

Chanyeol’s magic was sun-warmed wooden floors, light filtering through autumn leaves and glassless windows.

Sehun’s magic was almost lonely, high above touching the faces of sea-washed cliffs, making shores of clouds in the sky edging into twilight.

But Yixing’s magic was visually the clearest and most comforting to Baekhyun.

His magic was sweet yes, but there was something more to the sweetness that Baekhyun loved. Yixing’s magic felt _real_ to him- real in a way that it felt like a memory; an old memory that he’s not sure where and how it came from, but one that he cherishes.

The sun is just rising, weak but warm streaks of sunlight seep in through white curtains. The air smells of something soft, warm, and it makes Baekhyun’s mouth water. His feet are clad in soft clean socks and the floors are cool under them. It’s quiet and still, the house he’s in is still asleep- the plants are asleep, the little creatures that live in the walls, under the floors, on the rugs, are all still asleep. It’s restful and safe, and Baekhyun just _knows_ that this is home. In fact, he’s sure- he’s _so_ sure, that when he opens the door to what he knows is his bedroom he’ll hear-

‘-aekhyun?’

Yelping in shock, Baekhyun was too distracted by the _memory_ of Yixing’s magic to realize the magizoologist had snuck up after him, Gambit in his arms.

‘Oh-‘

‘Did I scare you? I’m sorry,’ he apologizes sincerely.

‘No- I was just uh, thinking-‘ Baekhyun says lamely, adding a nervous laugh towards the end. Fates, he really needed to get a grip.

‘Are you okay?’ Yixing asks gently.

‘I am? Why?’ Baekhyun wonders if he looks as strange as he felt.

‘You- uh, you seem jumpy these days,’ Yixing tells him quietly, ‘I uh- is it because of me?’

Baekhyun’s brain simultaneously goes into overdrive _and_ breaks down completely.

Because yes, Baekhyun is fidgety because of Yixing, but it’s probably not for whatever reason he’s thinking of.

‘No-! No, hyung, it’s not like that,’ Baekhyun tells him earnestly. ‘I just- I don’t know- the full-moon I think. It’s been really effecting my magic a lot and I’m afraid it might alarm the babies.’

Baekhyun looks down at the still sleeping jackalope in Yixing’s arms. And Baekhyun isn’t lying. Most magical-beings and creatures and folk were effected by the stages of the moon- this was a fact. And though Baekhyun wasn’t as greatly effected, it still made sense enough for Yixing to believe in.

‘But your magic is so soft,’ Yixing tells him and Baekhyun maybe wants to sink into the ground. Again. ‘The babies love you- sometimes more than me.’

‘Maybe it’s because I don’t feed them medicine,’ Baekhyun smiles a bit.

Yixing chuckles at that, nodding in agreement.

‘I miss you,’ Yixing tells him again, quietly. ‘I feel like I don’t see you as much.’

When Baekhyun first met Yixing when they were both teens, he had sort of been unashamedly attached- it was embarrassing to think about now. And truthfully speaking, Baekhyun couldn’t exactly control himself around Yixing- couldn’t stop himself from being obviously enamored. To the point where he thought that Yixing would definitely notice and would address the issue with him. But nothing like that happened.

Yixing just didn’t notice.

Or, like the small voice in Baekhyun’s head tells him _loudly_ , that he just simply ignored it because he thought Baekhyun was too much. So Baekhyun has been trying to distance himself, or at least _get over it_ , like Kris had suggested. But he couldn’t.

Unrequited love was only ever romantic or fun to read about- actually experiencing it was a pain in the ass- especially when the subject of your unrequited love was such a sweetheart.

‘I’m sorry hyung- you know that 2nd year gets pretty hectic,’ Baekhyun hates himself for saying things like this. Because he’s been using school work as an excuse to not hang out as much. He knows it’s a bit of a dick move, considering how he would always stick to Yixing before. For a long time, Baekhyun just somehow knew- or at least, told himself, that there was nothing more to _this_ \- he had already given up before the very suggestion of it could have ever existed. And he had expected himself to get over this small crush in a few months.

Yet here he was, 5 years later and still bursting out into obnoxious pink pixie-dust.

Baekhyun was just trying to save himself from the inevitable heartbreak and honestly, Yixing is not making it easier either.

‘Can we hang out now? Or uh- let’s take Gambit back? You can say hi to his brothers and sisters.’

Baekhyun can’t say no.

The times he’s been able to say no is through text or when he’s literally running away, his body pulling him away despite how his entire being wants to just spend time with the magizoologist, sending him googley heart eyes the entire time.

But Baekhyun knows this isn’t good for him. That this isn’t healthy for him.

‘Of course,’ Baekhyun smiles, petting the jackalope gently. ‘How many of them are there?’

The smile Yixing gives him hurts Baekhyun, his heart squeezing a little.

It sucked, being so in love with someone so wonderful and knowing that it wouldn’t be reciprocated.

‘There’s 7 of them Baekkie,’ Yixing tells him excitedly, standing close to him as they begin walking. ‘I swear to Fates you’re going to fall in love with all of them.’

Yixing’s magic is gentle and so pure

‘I can’t wait.’

 

 

*

 

 

 

 

‘Did you gather everyone taller than me to intimidate me into doing this,’ Baekhyun deadpans as he cranes his neck up to glare at Kris, flanked by Sehun, Jongin, Tao, and Chanyeol.

It was _8 in the morning_ on a _Saturday_. Baekhyun was about, 65% awake at this point and he’s pretty sure his pajama shirt is on backwards.

‘If I wanted to intimidate you, I’d bring Minseok and Kyungsoo,’ Kris raises his eyebrow without actually raising them.

What a genius.

‘So why exactly are you here-‘ Baekhyun wants to _sleep_ thank you.

‘We’re here to help you,’ Tao tells him excitedly, reaching past Jongin to throw himself at Baekhyun who dodges the beautiful elf expertly. It was too early for this much energy.

And height.

‘Help me with what-‘

‘Yixing!’

Chanyeol must have anticipated his move because he blocks the shutting door with his unnecessarily long arm.

‘Yixing and I are fine. There’s nothing more to it and there won’t be, because I don’t want-‘ Baekhyun is suddenly very awake, gritting his teeth as he tries and shut the door. But sadly, he’s up against 5 strong and wide awake people who are very determined.

And tall.

‘Hyung,’ Jongin looks genuinely sad, his beautiful sun-kissed face portraying nothing but an almost blissful sorrow, as though suffering some Renaissance painting style poetic heartbreak on Baekhyun’s behalf. ‘Hyung, please, for both of you. For a lifetime of joy and happiness-‘

‘-and great sex-‘ Sehun throws in unnecessarily, only pretending to push the door.

‘-of love and affection. Give yourself the chance for this! You deserve this! Yixing deserves this!’ Jongin takes his hands into his own, actual sparkling tears rolling down his face. Fuck, it really was like looking at a painting.

It’s a little overwhelming but Jongin’s words strike a chord in him. Maybe it _was_ too early and Baekhyun isn’t fully on defense yet.

‘We all deserve love! To love and be loved!’ Jongin reaches in through the partition and nuzzles his cheek against his own.

‘That’s-‘ Baekhyun’s throat is constricted and his arms weakening. ‘That’s good and all yes but-‘

Tao breaks through the door hugs Baekhyun tight. Then from around the back, Jongin blocks his escape, followed shortly by Sehun, Chanyeol and Kris. They all pile around him, long arms galore.

‘Don’t say what you were about to say,’ Sehun says in an unexpectedly serious tone. ‘Yixing loves you.’

It does a weird thing to his heart. His mind. His soul.

‘I don’t-‘

‘Trust me- trust us,’ Chanyeol’s arms are somehow long enough to reach around the others and still pat Baekhyun on his back.

‘You’ll see.’ Kris smiles, looking uncharacteristically gentle.

‘But why?’

‘Because you guys are idiots and we need to do something,’ Sehun deadpans, earning a jab from Tao.

‘We have a plan,’ Chanyeol announces as he squeezes them. ‘A really good one that I think will really make sense and will really help you two realize exactly what you mean to each other.’

‘I don’t want to condition Yixing or anything that’s not fair or right-‘ Baekhyun argues at once.

‘Hyung, please trust us,’ Tao whispers in a small voice. ‘We want both of you to be happy.’

‘I-‘

Baekhyun exhales slowly, crushed in the best way possible by this gigantic dorks, all of them wanting nothing more than for their friends to be happy. He can feel the genuine hope, the sincerity behind their plans, and most of all, belief that everything would turn out well. He senses no malicious intent, no impishness (that Sehun and Chanyeol were sometimes possessed with).

‘I don’t want any hand in this-‘

‘You don’t have to do anything!’ Chanyeol exclaims immediately. ‘You don’t have to say or behave out of the ordinary- this is just all about placement!’

‘Uh-‘

‘What Chanyeol means is,’ Kris says, poking his head in and over everything else so that Baekhyun has to look straight up to address the shifter. ‘-is that we just need you to be in certain places at certain times. The only thing you need to do is be in certain places at certain times, and to not be in certain places in certain times.’

‘…okay…but I have classes-‘

‘-and we have considered this!’ Sehun flips his hair back, ‘Above everything we value your education!’

Baekhyun shoots the lanky Dryad an unimpressed look.

‘How about you guys stop suffocating me and stop being ambiguous?’ Baekhyun tries.

In a whirlwind of movement, Baekhyun  finds himself seated, surrounded by his tall friends on the floor next to his bed and a cup of coffee in his hands ( _from where?!_ ).

‘Right- so this is it,’ Kris says and with unnecessary flourish pulls out a think paper-back book from inside his shirt ( _how did he put that in there?!_ ) and places it on the floor before Baekhyun. Gingerly, Baekhyun picks up the book, frowning as he reads the title.

‘ _”How To Catch a Unicorn”_? Really?’

‘I don’t need your judgment I need your support,’ Kris grimaces, snatching the book away from Baekhyun and placing it on the floor again with reverence. ‘It makes perfect sense! Yixing is just like a unicorn!’

‘I mean sure but-‘

‘It makes perfect sense,’ Jongin cuts in, ‘I was reading this and I thought that it was perfect-‘

‘-wait- _you_ were the one who came up with this-‘

‘We all did!’ Sehun and Tao butt in, both elbowing Jongin who had the misfortune of sitting between the two of them.

‘Silence all!’ Chanyeol commands, raising his long arms over all of them in what he clearly thought was threatening.

He’s met with blank stares.

‘R-right- let’s start-‘

‘Agreed,’ Kris flips open the book and Baekhyun is pretty sure it’s the type of book written for children to interest them in animals and creatures. He’s also pretty sure it was published in collaboration with his parent’s organization but he doesn’t dwell too much on that.

‘Here are the steps we’re going to follow,’ Kris announces, holding up the book ( _which was large in Baekhyun’s hands but now looks incredibly small in Kris’s hands?!_ ) as though it were sacred texts.

‘The first goes: _Track their movements_.’ Kris reads out solemnly.

‘Hyung- I’ve got you covered- this is Yixing-hyung’s university schedule as well as a general schedule of what he does, where he goes, and for how long,’ Jongin produces an A4 sheet of paper freshly printed with time-tables and columns of Yixing’s schedule printed on it.

‘Did you _stalk him-_?!’

‘Second!’ Kris interrupts as Baekhyun blankly holds Yixing’s schedule in his hands. ‘ _Make notes on their frequented locations_ ’!.’

‘Here you go- courtesy of yours truly,’ Chanyeol twirls another A4 that is just a little charred at the edges and slides it over the paper Baekhyun is already holding.

‘Oh Fates.’

‘Going on- number 3,’ Kris holds up three fingers. ‘You need to _‘Integrate your belongings into their frequented locations’-_ ‘

‘So I’m taking this with me bye-!’ Sehun has grabbed Baekhyun’s second pillow, hoodie, slippers, and his p _hone charger_ with him and is out of the room leaving behind a gust of wind.

Baekhyun doesn’t even have time to react.

‘B-but that’s-‘

‘Next- ‘ _Associate yourself as part of their immediate surrounding’_!’ Kris reads out and adds rather casually, ‘That has already been planned-‘

‘But-‘

‘Next- ‘ _Make your presence known by offering gifts_ ’- you don’t have to really worry about this part- Yixing is happy to please. You could give him a leaf and he’d thank you for hours,’ Kris shrugs dismissively before continuing on, ‘ _Let them study you-_ wait, we can cross this out because it’s already been done-‘

‘Wait what-‘

‘Ah yes- this one is good, ‘ _Engage in their habits’_ -‘ Kris reads out but Tao cuts in saying, ‘But hyung already does that-‘

‘It can be reinforced-‘ Chanyeol states.

‘Correct,’ Kris nods.

‘I’m literally right here-‘

‘Ah this one is good- ‘ _Create an environment where they depend on you’_ \- this can be very easily arranged-‘

‘Guys I don’t think-‘

‘-food is always a good conditioner.’

‘Right.’ Kris nods again before continuing, ‘Introduce your magic to them.’

‘I think we can consider this already done- Yixing-hyung is very tuned to Baek’s magic,’ Chanyeol grins at Baekhyun as though that was the best thing Baekhyun could ever imagine ( _it is- but not in this context_ ).

‘And finally- leave.’ Kris concludes grandly.

This takes Baekhyun aback.

‘What-?’

‘Yeap! Okay that’s that- so we’ll start operation ‘ _Catch a Magizoologist’_ from today!’ Jongin cheers while Zitao does the same.

‘Listen I don’t think this is a good idea-‘

‘You don’t have to do anything more than you already do,’ Kris cuts across gently as he pockets the book into his shirt. ‘Technically we didn’t have to tell you about what we were doing because it would work out without you knowing-‘

‘How kind of you to consider me,’ Baekhyun deadpans.

‘-but it’s…’ Kris pauses before giving Baekhyun a look that is genuinely serious and lacking in any of the slightly comic tone they had going on. ‘I want you to see.’

‘See what?’

Kris just gives him his infamous lopsided grin.

‘You’ll see.’

 

 

*

 

 

 

  1. **Track their movements and position**



 

Honestly Baekhyun isn’t really too opposed to any of this- and it’s mainly because he doesn’t see the point to any of it, and also because he has no expectation from it. When there is no point, and when you have zero expectations, you lose nothing. Maybe some time, but that was okay. It’s funny that the ‘ _Altitude Attitude A-group’_ aka AAA ( _not that Baekhyun came up with this truly amazing team name, but Jongin had seemed so pleased when he came up with it that no one could laugh out of fear of hurting his feelings_ ) had spent a week writing out Yixing’s schedule when Baekhyun already memorized it at the start of semester. Also, Yixing always made it a point to exchange their schedules so that they could meet up during free time or possible share some general courses together.

And they’ve done this from their first semester- but ever since the last semester, Baekhyun has carefully arranged it so that he didn’t have to share classes as frequently, or made it so that he didn’t have coinciding free time. Not because he didn’t enjoy them- no, that was far from it. Baekhyun loved sitting with Yixing for class, loved spending time with him.

Baekhyun just- just wanted to get over something he knew wasn’t going to get him anywhere in the future. He wasn’t some protagonist in some young adult romance novel, pining over some guy and miraculously getting together with him after some quirky and determined scheming.

‘I’m giving you guys 20 days for this,’ he had told them. ‘That’s it.’

‘We won’t need that much time,’ Chanyeol had reassured him.

‘You’re all insane- this is conditioning- I know what it is.’ Baekhyun knows it well, because in some cases with magical creatures and their protection, it was required. ‘It requires a lot of time and dedication.’

‘Yeah- and we won’t need a lot of it- trust us.’ Jongin gave him a blinding smile, a thumb’s up added.

Sighing, Baekhyun pockets the paper in his bag and as he makes his way to the cafeteria, nearly collides head first (well, head to chin) into Yixing.

Baekhyun’s first thought is ‘ _wait- doesn’t he have class right now?’_ and ‘ _fuck-‘_. A flurry of pink glitter erupts and Baekhyun is already apologizing before he can even look at Yixing.

But then a pair of solid hands steady him, prompting him to look up.

‘Baek!’ Yixing smiles down at him, pink pixie dust glimmering about him.

_Fuck._

‘O-oh hey,’ Baekhyun manages to get out.

‘Getting lunch?’ Yixing smiles.

‘Yes-?’

‘Great! Let’s eat together! I’m starving!’

‘Uh okay-‘

Baekhyun isn’t sure, but he _swears_ he sees a head of white-blond hair whipping past the cafeteria doorway. But before he can really look, Yixing is taking his hand in his and merrily guiding him away.

‘What do you think? Stir-fry? Noodles?’ Yixing asks, looking back at Baekhyun.

‘Uh-‘

‘Oh- you have something.’ Yixing stops and suddenly he’s too close- much too close-

‘-eyelash,’ Yixing smiles, dimples showing unfairly.

‘Thanks-‘ Baekhyun manages to whisper.

‘Make a wish,’ Yixing still hasn’t moved away, finger holding up what Baekhyun thinks is his eyelash honestly at this point he doesn’t know or care.

‘I uh-‘ Baekhyun gulps, ‘You can make a wish-‘

‘Really?’ Yixing looks away and at his finger, a thoughtful look on his face. Then quietly he blows the eyelash away, smiling at Baekhyun much too happily.

‘Uh- so what did you wish for?’ Baekhyun asks, finally able to breathe as Yixing steps away.

‘You know I can’t say,’ Yixing smiles at him, ‘But it’s the same one as always.’

‘Oh?’ Baekhyun can finally physically feel his own body from the shock of suddenly meeting Yixing and his legs now listen to him as he’s able to catch up to Yixing’s pace.

Yixing just smiles, still not letting go of their hands and says, ‘Yeah.’

 

 

 

 

  1. **Make notes on their frequented locations**



 

Baekhyun sends out a text to one of his classmates, informing them that he was at their meet-up point to discuss their group-work. Nursing a caramel-hot chocolate, Baekhyun makes his way to his favorite table. It’s angled perfectly- just far enough from the door so it’s not noisy, but close enough to see it opening. It’s also angled next to one of the larger windows inside the café that overlooked a leafy fence that bordered a quaint hipster-ish shopping district.

Baekhyun is startled from his window-gazing when something wet hits his hand.

Imagining everything gross, Baekhyun looks down in alarm to find a _capybara_?!

‘Uh-‘

‘Goldblum!’

Of course Yixing would name a capybara _Goldblum._

Yixing appears, slightly winded as though he’d been running. The top of his cheeks are flushed and he looks out of breath. He has a floral leash on one hand that matches the chest-harness on _Goldblum_.

‘Hyung-‘

‘Oh- Goldblum came to you!’ Yixing looks embarrassed.

‘Uh-‘ Baekhyun is confused, staring down at the capybara then up at Yixing multiple times, wondering how to make sense of this.

‘He’s a caregiver that I’m- well…taking care of? That I’m training?’ Yixing explains as he crouches down to reattach the onto the chest harness around the gentle looking creature.

Goldblum refuses to move away from Baekhyun, sitting adamantly by his feet and doesn’t do anything but occasionally nudge his face against Baekhyun’s knees.

‘I didn’t know capybaras were used as caregivers,’ Baekhyun finds himself saying, glad that no pixie dust was flying out of him.

‘They are!’ Yixing plonks down on the seat Baekhyun’s partner was supposed to be sitting on. ‘They’re such sweet docile creatures- very chill! And normally very obedient I don’t know why he just ran off like this-‘

‘Ah! That’s because capybaras can sense the needs of those around them!’ a very cheery looking Lu Han announces, appearing seemingly, out of nowhere.

Both Baekhyun and Yixing jump a little in surprise.

‘So your uh- _Goldblum_ here, sensed your needs- maybe for coffee? And came here!’ the shifter announces proudly. How Baekhyun did not detect Lu Han before is a mystery to him- but it somehow makes sense, because Lu Han’s magic has always felt mysterious to Baekhyun. A hint of darkness to it- so Baekhyun wouldn’t be too surprised if Lu Han could mask his magic from detection.

The question now is why Lu Han would choose to do this.

‘How do you know this?’ Baekhyun and Yixing ask at the same time.

‘I just do,’ Lu Han replies, giving them both a beatific smile before drifting away.

‘He was here the whole time?’ Yixing asks, face surprisingly red.

‘I- I don’t know? Lu-hyung is a bit…uh, unique.’ Baekhyun shrugs, leaning down to pet the capybara that was now nudging him. ‘What are you doing in this area though hyung?’

Even for training, it seemed odd to come to such a busy area.

‘Oh yes- well-‘ Yixing actually stammers a moment.

‘Baekhyun-oppa?’

For the second time that day, both Yixing and Baekhyun jump in surprise again.

It’s Seulgi, Baekhyun’s classmate for his group project.

Again, Baekhyun doesn’t know how he didn’t detect her magic. She was a mage-in-training, descended from a clan blessed by the Earth Spirits. They had an ancient but very gentle magic to them that was very easy to detect. But apparently Baekhyun’s radar is off today.

‘Ah, Seulgi-ah-‘

Seulgi smiles, holding up the books they were supposed to use as reference as though to remind Baekhyun why he was there.

‘Oh I guess I’ll get going- uh you must be busy-‘ Yixing smiles hastily and literally picking up Goldblum (making Yeri squeal with delight), rushes out with the heavy creature.

‘That was weird but cool!’ Seulgi exclaims, taking a seat.

‘Uh- yeah, I guess?’

And honestly Baekhyun can’t seem to stop bumping into Yixing at really random locations. He’s also wondering if he’s somehow been influenced into going to certain places by the AAA ( _dammit that stupid name stuck_ ) where Yixing would be without being told to like they said they would. At this point Baekhyun just sort of expects Yixing to appear everywhere he is.

Like right now, where Yixing is sitting in front of him, helping him staple tinsel to part of the announcement board they were supposed to mount up for the Care of Creatures Club ( _or Triple C as it was better known_ ). The thing is Baekhyun _knows_ that Yixing is supposed to be at a field trip right now. But he doesn’t want to ask _why_ \- not when Yixing is telling him a story of when he was younger, fishing at a river side with his grandfather.

Not that Baekhyun is counting, but it’s the 5th day since the AAA announced their ridiculous plan and honestly, seeing as nothing has really changed and Baekhyun hasn’t been made to run to random locations to conveniently bump into Yixing, he was going to enjoy this little moment.

Sometimes it was okay being selfish, Baekhyun shrugs to himself.

‘Are you okay?’ Yixing asks, having caught the motion.

‘-what?’

‘Are you okay?’ Yixing repeats himself.

‘I-‘ Baekhyun pauses for a short moment before he smiles, waving the tinsel about and saying, ‘Yeah!’

Yixing doesn’t respond immediately, his expression a little serious, a little _sad_ -

Then he’s smiling again.

‘Okay.’

 

 

 

 

  1. **Integrate your belongings into their frequented locations**



 

Baekhyun can swear- on all the Fates, on the Moon- on Kris’s hair-care collection, that Yixing was wearing his hoodie.

On Baekhyun it’s rather larger- bought for that very reason. But on Yixing it’s a bit more fitted, and sleeves pulled and rolled under the elbows, the chest stretched just a little, and the deep green of the material unfairly highlights the natural warm tones of Yixing’s hair.

‘That’s mine.’ Baekhyun says in greeting.

‘Oh! I just- it was with my clothes?’ Yixing tilts his head and then points at Baekhyun’s own hoodie. ‘And that’s mine! We exchanged!’

Baekhyun’s eyes widen and he stares down.

Baekhyun shared a room with Kyungsoo, so sometimes their clothes got mixed up. Meaning Baekhyun liked to purposefully knick some of Kyungsoo’s clothes- especially when he wanted to wear something dark because Kyungsoo didn’t own anything lighter than dark-grey. And the hoodie Baekhyun had picked up was black, so Baekhyun just assumed it was Kyungsoo’s.

Baekhyun can literally feel pixie dust erupting around him.

‘Ooh- pretty-‘ Yixing reaches up to catch the dust that _shimmers even more you pieces of shit-_

‘Oh- oh Fates I don’t even know how that happened-‘ Baekhyun begins to attempt to remove the hoodie but Yixing stops him just as quickly.

‘It’s okay! You look cute!’

The pixie dust has no chill.

‘I uh-‘

‘I mean- unless you’re not comfortable?’ Yixing looks worried.

_Indeed because hoodies were so uncomfortable._

‘No-! No, it’s uh- it’s great-‘

Baekhyun tries to explain but then something catches his eye.

A tall something that is trying to sneak out with all the subtlety of a hurricane.

‘Uh- hyung, I need to go take care of something,’ Baekhyun manages to say before he zeroes in on Zitao’s retreating form and gives chase.

Baekhyun isn’t the most athletic, but he’s incredibly light on his feet and can hover in the air when needed.

That, plus speed and momentum propels him forward and he latches on to Zitao’s back with a triumphant ‘ _Ha!’_.

‘Ouch oucH! OUCH!’ Zitao wheezes as he steadies them before they fall to the ground.

Baekhyun has the elf in a head-lock.

‘Oh Tao,’ Baekhyun grunts, locking his legs around Zitao tightly and making his voice as menacing as possible. ‘Fancy seeing you here eh? What were you doing hm? Just passing through? Or _spying on me-_ ‘

‘It’s not- I was just-‘

Baekhyun is peeled off of Zitao by an alarmed Chanyeol who then quickly drops him, giving Zitao time to run, limbs flailing wildly as he disappears into the crowd of students appearing from the other end of the hallway.

‘Have you been misplacing our stuff-‘ Baekhyun turns to confront Chanyeol but is met with an empty hallway, a hint of ash and smoke in the air clearly indicating that Chanyeol had successfully managed in learning how to use the fire-based teleportation.

Baekhyun silently rages in the middle of the hallway, much to the alarm of the Healers-in-training who were walking to their next class.

And more misplaced items pop up everywhere. Almost to the point where Baekhyun actually goes to find Yixing to get back his calculator, his school books, his laptop charger- and at one point his shampoo (?!?!?). He also returns Yixing’s stuff that popped up in his apartment. Baekhyun just decides to haul through his stuff to find everything misplaced when he realizes that- a lot of the things in his room actually did belong to Yixing and has been in there for a long time.

The pillow he used when he slept was Yixing’s. The slippers that were too large for him by his bedside were Yixing’s. The potted plants on his window sill were Yixing’s, but given to him for safe keeping because apparently Baekhyun had a green-thumb. So much of Yixing’s belongings had integrated themselves into Baekhyun’s immediate environment.

‘Hey- you okay?’

Kyungsoo exits their shared bathroom, hair damp from the shower he just took.

Baekhyun looks down to find that he’s holding onto the funny sheep stuff doll Yixing had forgotten in his room and never took back again.

‘I yeah- I’m fine.’

Kyungsoo gives him an amused smile and says, ‘Please control the pixie dust.’

Baekhyun lets out a strangled embarrassed groan.

 

 

 

 

  1. **Associate yourself as part of their immediate surrounding**



 

‘Why am I here?’ Baekhyun whispers tersely through a smiling face as he waves at Yixing from the side of the stables. Junmyeon who leans against the doors, also smiling and waving at Yixing (who, ironically was handling a unicorn mainly for a show-and-tell hosted by the university to educate young visiting students on magical creatures) as he waited for his turn to bring about the unicorn he was handling.

‘Because,’ Junmyeon shrugs, ‘This is part of the tour- being a member of the student council, it is under my responsibility to show and lead tours through the university. They section everyone loves is the Triple C sections- but because I happen to smell like dragon-‘

‘Literally you two are so gross-‘

‘-most creatures are frightened of me. So I’m asking you to take over in this section.’

‘But why _me-_ ‘

‘You know the most about creatures _and_ the university,’ Junmyeon replies blithely before taking a step back. ‘Now go in there and helpfully guide the tour! Yixing will be more than happy to accommodate I’m sure!’

This was dumb. Dumb _and_ stupid.

Junmyeon, being the alchemist he was, could very easily procure a potion to spray on himself to remove all dragon-ish scent off of him. Also, scents didn’t work like that, not if you were a normal being with normal hygiene etiquette. But Junmyeon has long vanished towards the central university building and Baekhyun now has to go in and play tour-guide alongside Yixing.

They planned it well, Baekhyun admits. He had no classes today and no assignments pending. It made sense that Minseok and Jongdae had suddenly appeared, imploring Baekhyun to study alongside them, making sure he finished all of his assignments the night before.

Baekhyun can trust _no one_.

‘You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to,’ Yixing says as soon as he’s close enough.

But Baekhyun has made up his mind. His exasperation at his friends has turned into energy to, regardless, do the right thing. If he was here to help Yixing, then he was going to fucking help Yixing.

After all Junmyeon was right.

Baekhyun has grown up with parents who were passionate in their advocacy for saving magical creatures, and whatever information or knowledge they had, they gave freely and enthusiastically to Baekhyun and his brother.

‘No,’ he says firmly. ‘I will help you hyung- don’t worry- we’ll do such a good job, the University Board of Student Council or whatever they’re called will permanently hire us as guides and we’ll get paid.’ Baekhyun quickly pulls on a sturdy canvas apron over his clothes and nods firmly at Yixing. ‘Let’s do this and get paid!’

Yixing raises his hand for a high-five which Baekhyun meets with gusto. But his gusto is slightly disturbed when Yixing entwines their fingers and holds their hands over his chest.

‘Thank you so much,’ he says, sincerity and _relief_ in his expression.

Baekhyun sort of hates himself for avoiding Yixing so much that his closest, sweetest friend now regards his actions as half-hearted or untrue.

‘You don’t have to thank me hyung- this is what friends do,’ Baekhyun states bravely with a nod.

Yixing nods, his smile a little odd as he repeats, ‘It’s what friends do.’

 

 

 

 

  1. **Make your presence known by offering gifts**



 

It’s a bit too obvious when Kyungsoo and Chanyeol appear, suddenly thrusting a large Tupperware ( _isn’t that one of Kris’s collectable Tupperwares?!_ ) filled with muffins into Baekhyun’s hands and then disappearing, proclaiming some random emergency they had to attend.

‘Okay…’

It gets even more obvious when, once again, he bumps into Yixing, and the latter is also holding an identical Tupperware ( _it’s definitely Kris’s_ ), but this one is filled with sandwiches.

‘Oh! I’ll exchange half for yours!’ Yixing beams at once, ‘I want dessert!’

‘You’re a dessert,’ Baekhyun mumbles under his breath.

‘Hm?’

‘Here’s your dessert!’ Baekhyun wheezes, internally thankful that he’s not exploding in pixie dust. Sure the air is a little sparkly but that’s fine.

‘Oh right!’ Yixing exclaims while Baekhyun delivers half of the muffins into Yixing’s Tupperware. ‘The school board wanted me to give you this for helping out with the guide!’

With one hand, Yixing reaches into his pocket and retrieves a shiny enamel pin. It’s not the cliché university merchandise you could buy at the souvenir/book-shop, but rather a very pretty pastel-themed unicorn badge.

‘It’s so pretty!’ Baekhyun exclaims at once. His first instinct is to pin it onto his sweater, but being one hand short, is unable to do so.

‘Here- let me-‘

Yixing places his Tupperware over Baekhyun’s, making him hold them with both hands. Taking the enamel badge from his hands, Yixing steps in _very close_ and ducking his height to meet his, carefully pins the badge onto his sweater.

‘Thanks.’ Baekhyun manages to wheeze out, all too aware of the swirling pink pixie dust.

Yixing doesn’t move away immediately, instead just looking down at the unicorn badge with a small smile.

The moment is broken when Yixing looks up.

The latter steps away as though electrocuted, looking around the pink dust as though horrified and ashamed.

‘Hyung-‘

‘I –uh, should get going- I’ll see you later Baekhyun-ah!’ he rambles as he walks away crab-fashion, arms curled into his chest and shoulders narrowed as though trying not to let the pixie dust touch him.

It reminds Baekhyun of Yixing’s reaction to pigeons ( _an odd but still legitimate fear because pigeons were assholes_ ) and he can’t help but wonder why Yixing is _afraid_ of him **now**.

A bitter taste fills his mouth, his throat feels dry, and Baekhyun just suddenly wants to fall face-first into his blankets and disassociate.

What did Baekhyun do to illicit such a reaction from Yixing?

Or- or did Yixing finally figure out _why_ Baekhyun reacted like this, and he was put-off by it?

His phone buzzes and breaks him out of his mental-stupor. It’s a message from Jongin.

He knows it’s probably some random direction or request for him to follow, in order for them to execute this ridiculous plan.

But all Baekhyun has gained from it, is what he had feared from the very beginning.

Ignoring the message, Baekhyun tucks the Tupperware under one arm and makes his way back to his room.

 

 

 

 

  1. **Let them study you in turn, allow them to approach you**



 

Creating and writing spells was a very tricky and careful operation.

It had similar principles as alchemy and rune-scribing, where you had to be incredibly careful with what you drew, where you drew it, and how you drew it.

The same spell used for general cleaning could be used for _skinning_ if you swapped mineral water for fat while drawing the incantation.

Of course Baekhyun has never committed murder via magical typos but has come close to burning off Jongdae’s eyebrows once. The rune-scribe didn’t speak to him for about a week after that incident.

Apparently he really treasured his eyebrows.

So when Baekhyun has to create new spells, he does it in the privacy and safety of the practice-rooms created specifically for Casters like himself. It’s not very big, but the ceiling is high and there’s plenty of natural light coming from the narrow but tall windows. The room is void of any furniture as per usual. But Baekhyun likes to be comfortable when he practices, so he normally brings a flat sitting cushion and pushes it up against the wall so that he can lean back to rest.

Casting spells and creating new incantations was time consuming and you had to be very patient. Casters were like alchemists only they didn’t transmute with the laws of equivalent exchange in regards to biophysics, but rather casters created whole new adjustments, particles, and existences purely out of magic.

A Caster was only as powerful as their magic and how they could project it out of themselves to create something else.

The spell Baekhyun was attempting to create was swirling gently in the thin parchment before him. It was a spell he had already created but he was trying to recreate so that he wouldn’t have to keep renewing it every few months. Almost a year ago, Kris had asked him to help him with a spell for Junmyeon’s birthday present surprise. It was a simple one to make the plants in Junmyeon’s small balcony garden bloom better- but it had to be renewed every 3 months.

This time Baekhyun had taken extra measures. He first took the soil from Junmyeon’s garden, as well as a strand of Junmyeon’s hair, and one of Kris’s long whiskers when he had shifted into his Dragon form. Grounding the hair and whisker into powder and mixing it with the soil, he mixed it with a vial of blessed water he had obtained from his classmate who was a water-nymph.

Then using a pen with a nib made from wood from the enchanted Hanging Gardens of Babylon, Baekhyun had written out the incantation onto the parchment he made himself.

Now all he had to do was wait for the special ink to mix with his magic and settle in with the parchment. Then he would be able to go to Junmyeon’s garden, read it out loud, and the garden would flourish for as long as Junmyeon and Kris’s magic existed within the vicinity of the garden.

It was all very fun and cool but it was also _incredibly boring_.

Baekhyun yawns again as he stares blankly at the parchment before him when there’s a tapping sound on the window.

Of course it’s Yixing.

BUT WHAT WAS HE DOING OUTSIDE THE WINDOW THEY WERE 3 FLOORS UP O _H MY GOD-_

Scrambling up to the window and carefully opening it Baekhyun all but screams at the magizoologist who was mounted on a _griffin-_

‘Wanna catch a ride?’ Yixing grins at him, hair messy and his cheeks ruddy from the wind.

Baekhyun stares blankly at the griffin who was skillfully latched onto the awning and sill of the window.

‘I uh- spell-‘ Baekhyun manages to get out, thumbing behind him to indicate his work.

Yixing pushes his hair back ( _wow rude no thanks bye_ ) and peers inside before making a small _o_ of realization.

‘Is it almost done?’ Yixing pats the griffin who shakes his head majestically and Baekhyun is overwhelmed with the smell of both something dog and bird at the same time and it’s only just a little off-putting.

‘Uh- I don’t think so-‘

And of course his spell would be complete. The whole parchment glows for a moment, rising up in the air for a few moments before fluttering down, the edges curling just a little.

‘Is this for Junmyeon’s garden?’ Yixing asks and Baekhyun doesn’t want to know how Yixing knew, but it probably had to do with how he knew where he was going to be.

Baekhyun nods in reply, internally amused because the griffin seemed to be rather interested with the parchment, large bronze eyes squinting at it.

‘We’ll take you- right Momo?’ Yixing pats _Momo_ who readjusts his wings as though in reply.

Baekhyun, in his defense, has always wanted to ride a griffin. So he might as well take this opportunity. Grinning and nodding in reply, Baekhyun runs back to parchment and rolling it up carefully, goes back to the window.

‘Oh wait- you might get cold,’ Yixing stops him as Baekhyun climbs up on the window sill. He removes his jacket, under which he was already wearing another jacket and hands it to Baekhyun.

Again, Baekhyun doesn’t want to know why or how Yixing had _two_ jackets on so conveniently.

‘Will Momo be okay with both our weights?’ Baekhyun asks as he pulls the large jacket on and makes to climb behind Yixing.

‘Sit in front!’ Yixing pats the space between his legs on Momo’s shoulders.

‘Eh-?’

Luckily the wind is strong enough to blow off th _e damn pixie dust-_

Yixing literally picks him up and places him in front of him.

‘Griffins can cuff their wings and that hurts when you sit in the back,’ Yixing explains, adjusting both of them and Baekhyun could honestly really just die right now. No really, he vaguely considers simply rolling off of Momo’s back and just let nature take its course.

But no such luck, because Yixing securely wraps his arms around him and before Baekhyun can even _squeak_ Momo is off.

It’s exhilarating and Baekhyun can’t help but beam, laughing in delight. He can hear Yixing laughing behind him too- his magic swirling and sweet- almost palpable on Baekhyun’s tongue.

They land on Junmyeon’s balcony but the alchemist is nowhere to be seen (no surprise there) and neither is Kris (but Baekhyun’s pretty sure he’s somewhere watching). But Baekhyun can’t rue them this.

Yixing dismounts first and then reaches up to help Baekhyun get off as Momo lowers himself a little.

‘Thank you Momo,’ Baekhyun pats the griffin’s beak in thanks, getting a lazy wink in response.

‘Can I watch?’ Yixing asks.

Baekhyun is normally private when it comes to casting spells- especially new ones. Mainly to save himself the embarrassment in case it didn’t work out. But he feels good, his magic feels strong ( _like it always does around Yixing- but now is not the time to think of that-_ ), and Baekhyun is 99.99% sure this was going to work out.

‘Pray, take a seat and be awed,’ Baekhyun replies, waving his arms about in a flourishing movement. Yixing claps excitedly and sits on the ground next to Momo who also watches with interest.

And it does work.

Quietly singing his incantation, Baekhyun watches as the plants in the balcony seem just a little more vibrant- just a little fresher. The leaves are shinier, the flowers fuller, the soil richer. The smell of petrichor fills the air and the air shimmers as though they were caught within a mirage.

Feeling incredibly pleased with himself, Baekhyun turns to look at Yixing, expecting well deserved praise ( _he tries not to think about how he missed this_ ).

Yixing is crowned with flowers, and clearly a little surprised by the flowers too, judging by how he looks awed. Baekhyun, again, wants to maybe die.

Nature Sprites often summoned flower crowns as part of a courting ritual- it was an old one, but incredibly romantic. Baekhyun’s mum had made one for his dad, and she made one every year for their anniversary as well.

Yixing looks pleased, reaching up and pulling out one of the soft pink peonies before standing up. He walks over to Baekhyun, who finds himself rooted to the ground, and places it behind his ear.

Baekhyun is 99.99% sure he just heard Kris squeal but he ignores it in favor of securing the flower behind his ear that’s incredibly red.

‘Everything you do is so pretty,’ Yixing smiles, brushing his hair back gently before _finally_ looking away. ‘This is amazing.’

‘Thank you,’ Baekhyun manages to sound somewhat normal. ‘What you do is amazing too hyung.’

Yixing ducks his head as though embarrassed.

‘Wanna eat?’ he offers instead and holds his arm out for Baekhyun to take.

‘Only if you pay hyung,’ Baekhyun takes his arm and tries not to latch on.

Yixing rolls his eyes but pulls Baekhyun closer.

‘When have I never paid?’

 

 

 

 

  1. **Engage with them in their habits**



 

Baekhyun loves to de-stress by playing video games.

Of course Kyungsoo would argue that Baekhyun ends up _more_ stressed. But Baekhyun loves that feeling of elation, that ultimate satisfaction, of catc _hing and reporting this asshole-_

‘Think you can trick me huh?’ Baekhyun curses under his breath, violently clicking his mouse and pulling up the report page. ‘Think I don’t see you? I’ll teach you-‘

Baekhyun is vaguely aware of the door opening and closing. He guesses Kyungsoo has had enough of his aggressive narrative.

‘-there! Got you, you fucking twat think _twice_ before you even _attempt_ to overrule me you piece of shi-‘

‘This looks very violent.’

It takes Baekhyun a solid 5 seconds to realize that what spoke to him, was in fact, not the _pixiu_ (a magical creature from mainland China that resembled a small lion but with wings) that was comfortably lounging on his bed, but from Yixing who was standing over next to him, covered in long strands of golden hair.

Baekhyun’s character in the game dies a terrible death, the sound effect making Yixing wince apologetically.

‘It is quite violent,’ Baekhyun tries to grin before addressing the pixiu in the room, ‘Uh- is he supposed to be here?’

‘Oh! Pascal is very well trained! I’m baby-sitting him for today,’ Yixing explains as though it was perfectly reasonable to baby-sit a dog-sized lion with wings and casually bring him (without a leash or collar) into the living dorms.

‘He’s very smart!’ Yixing smiles at _Pascal_ (it’s honestly a weird name considering where the creature comes from but Baekhyun is not one to judge).

‘But he only understands French I’m afraid,’ Yixing makes a funny face. ‘French, and lots of pointing and mime.’

‘Of course he understands _mime_ -‘ Baekhyun begins but he’s leveled by a very human, very unimpressed expression from _Pascal_ as though he was saying _that was rather racist and I’m not here for it_ and Baekhyun instantly apologizes in a flurry of broken French, some Mandarin, even Japanese for good measure.

‘So uh- going on a tour?’ Baekhyun asks, pushing his chair a little away from the bed where Pascal has now taken to observing the rest of the room with a sort of distaste and expression that clearly showed how unimpressed he was. Baekhyun wonders if he should start playing La Vie En Rose or something to appease him.

‘Pascal was bored- he wanted to do something but I uh-‘ Yixing sort of shrugs helplessly, looking over at the pixiu as though slightly despaired.

Baekhyun’s game plays the opening soundtrack again and Pascal perks up, as though intrigued by the music.

‘He seems to like music?’ Baekhyun remarks.

As though on cue, Pascal’s tail sways to the music.

Baekhyun and Yixing share a look before they both spring into action.

 

*

 

When Kyungsoo comes back, carrying with him some snacks and his dinner for that evening, he’s stopped by several long arms that pull him back into the hallway.

‘What the actual fuck-‘

‘Shh!! Look!’ Kris looks too happy as he points into the crack of Kyungsoo’s shared dorm room.

Inside the room, both Yixing and Baekhyun are doing a funny dance-step, timed to some song they were both enthusiastically singing to while a _winged lion_ stood in between them on its hind-legs, doing a strange hopping step.

‘What the actual fuck-‘

‘This is the most amazing thing I’ve seen in the past hour,’ Sehun remarks, his hair stylishly swept away.

‘What’s the most amazing thing you saw before this?’ Zitao asks, genuinely intrigued.

‘My face.’

Chanyeol rolls his eyes so hard, Kyungsoo is momentarily worried they’re going to roll back permanently.

‘They’re so cute,’ Jongin sighs beatifically as he watches them, posed in a way that most would think was purposefully model-like.

‘I really hope they both just open their eyes and really see what’s in front of them,’ Kris adds.

Opening one of his snacks Kyungsoo snorts and says, ‘When that happens I’ll need a place to crash.’

‘What for?’ Jongin asks, blinking at him in question.

‘For when they finally fuc-‘ Sehun begins but is stopped by Kris’s large hand that nearly completely covers his face.

‘For when they finally flourish in their love for each other!’ Chanyeol hastily replies.

Jongin is all but confused for a moment before he sighs beatifically again and says, ‘I would love to see that!’

Kyungsoo leaves the now red-faced group by the doorway, choking as he laughs on his snack.

 

 

 

 

  1. **Create an environment where they depend on you**



 

“ _b @ the compound at 4- nxt to gate2. Thx”_

Was the mysterious text Baekhyun had received from Sehun an hour ago.

Unsure what to expect, Baekhyun stood by gate 2 of the University’s main compound ( _overgrown with rowan trees and taken care of by druid-students_ ) wondering why he was there. Sehun had the tendency of being vague whenever he texted but Baekhyun can’t help but feel that this was something more. And even though he didn’t believe in any of what the AAA had planned for him, he still finds himself listening to the text- well, technically _reading_ the text but that-

‘WATCH OUT!’

Baekhyun doesn’t have time to watch out when a flurry of furry _birds_ erupt from the forest and swarm around him.

Baekhyun has been around enough magical creatures to know how to behave but this is still very sudden and Baekhyun freezes.

He’s tackled to the ground by a familiar and welcome magic and-

‘Oh Fates!’ Yixing gasps looking down at Baekhyun who honestly lost all ability to speak the moment his body hit the leaf-strewn compound floor.

‘Are you all right?’ Yixing asks desperately.

Baekhyun nods mutely, still trying to recover.

He makes a mental note to ignore all of Sehun’s messages from today.

‘I don’t know what happened to them!’ Yixing explains as he looks up at the birds still flying above them in timed spins and loops.

‘A-are those-‘ Baekhyun tries and Yixing leans in close as though to listen clearer, obviously unaware of how he was basically using Baekhyun as a mattress.

‘Are those chamrosh pups?’

‘They are!’ Yixing confirms delightfully.

Chamrosh were a sort of species categorized under chimeras- with the body of a dog but head and wings of a bird. Their _pups_ were small and cuddly and hatched from eggs made of pure gemstone, making them rare and valuable. Baekhyun didn’t know that the university was housing a pack-nest. They had clearly decided to take root in the rowan trees here, meaning this was their territory now.

Baekhyun wonders how the druid students feel about it.

‘How old?’ Baekhyun asks.

Yixing rolls over onto his back as well, still keeping close to Baekhyun.

‘They hatched a little over a month ago,’ Yixing explains before he holds up a small whistle and blows on it.

There is no sound, but the pups all realign in their flight and head back down towards them.

Landing on all four paws a little clumsily, they clamber all over them, making chirping sounds as they roll on the leafy grounds.

‘How many are there?’ Baekhyun asks as he picks one up by the scruff of their neck and places it away from crawling over Yixing’s face.

’32,’ Yixing beams. ‘Their parents should be around.’

‘All from one nesting?’ Baekhyun asks, impressed.

‘Lucky,’ Yixing beams before adding, ‘They like you.’

‘You say that like they don’t like other people- surely they have other caretakers?’

‘It’s just me,’ Yixing replies with a shrug, wincing as one of the pups uses its beak to pull at his hair. ‘They don’t like the others.’

‘This is a lot of work,’ Baekhyun says and adds without thinking, ‘I can help if you want.’

‘You will?’ Yixing sits up, his lap filling up with the pups.

‘Of course I will,’ Baekhyun replies without looking at Yixing, wondering what he got himself into, and wondering if he could get away with murder- but then Sehun was hardly to blame here.

‘Their parents are here.’

Fully grown, the Chamrosh were no bigger than an average dog, but their talons were intimidating and they had a generally aloof air to them that made them appear hostile. But Baekhyun knows better.

‘I think they’ve adopted you,’ Yixing smiles as one of the grown Chamrosh plops down next to Baekhyun’s head, wings lightly fanning over his shoulders as though in acknowledgement.

‘Ah- my parents will be thrilled,’ Baekhyun grins as he gently strokes one of the wings closer to him.

‘I come check on them every Tuesday and Saturday- will you okay with that?’ Yixing asks quietly, almost hesitantly.

It makes Baekhyun feel guilty, knowing how many times he’s put Yixing off this year.

‘Of course,’ Baekhyun smiles as genuinely and lightly as he can. ‘Can’t leave family right?’

Yixing smiles at him, looking pleased, before he settles back down, this time using Baekhyun as a pillow.

The Chamrosh flock around them and it feels painfully like bliss.

 

 

 

 

  1. **Finally introduce your magic to them**



 

 

The good thing about being a pixie is having a remarkable immune system.

Pixies were _very_ healthy, their metabolism nearly incredibly iron-clad. If they sustain injury, then they recovered quickly- hardly taking more than a few days to recover from broken bones, minor surgeries, and so on.

However, Baekhyun is only _half_ pixie. Which is why he’s groaning, his entire body pulsing with feverish pain, his head all too sensitive and weirdly detached from the rest of his body. If Baekhyun could visualize the way he felt, his head would be made of both concrete and marshmallow and would be embedded on the floor while a rhino stomped on it repeatedly. His body would be twitching in the corner pelted by both hail and brimstone.

Dramatic yes, but very accurate to how he felt.

Baekhyun groans- his new method of communication- as he tries to open his eyes.

Yixing is looking at him, worry etched into every feature (if his dimples were showing then _that_ would be sad too. A sad dimple. Cute, but still sad).

‘Baekkie,’ he speaks softly, as though worried Baekhyun would break if he spoke too loudly.

A sentiment he appreciates unlike how Chanyeol, Jongdae, and Jongin all felt the need to speak LIKE THIS RIGHT NEXT TO HIM. Thankfully Kyungsoo got rid of them and Baekhyun vows to buy the sorcerer dinner for a week.

‘Does your head hurt?’ he asks gently, kneeling on the floor next to his bed.

Baekhyun blinks in reply, nodding very slightly.

‘Is there anything I can do to help?’

Baekhyun shakes his head very slightly, and smiles. Or at least he hopes he’s smiling.

He’s not sure, it could be the fever and the overall shitty feeling, but Yixing was glowing.

A nice soft glow- as though sunlight loved him and remained on him regardless of where he went.

‘-sun.’

Yixing makes a confused face but then his eyebrows suddenly go up, the same way it does when he’s thought of something new.

‘Do you want to listen to a lullaby by ma used to sing to me when I was younger?’ he asks, making himself comfortable and sitting closer.

Baekhyun guesses he’s given some form of indication of approval because Yixing beams at him ( _sunlight game is really strong_ ) and clears his throat.

‘Remember how I said, that when I was younger, my parents and I travelled a lot?’

Baekhyun remembers. It’s one of the reasons why Yixing loved magical creatures- he had met and seen all sorts during his travels. His parents were documentary film-makers, and were involved in a lot of productions involving magical creatures. In fact they had even collaborated with Baekhyun’s parents organization a few times.

‘Sometimes I used to go with ma and pa, but sometimes it was too dangerous to take me- so they would hire a baby-sitter,’ he explains, leaning his head on the mattress, smiling fondly at his memory. ‘I was 5, and I think it was one of the first times they had left me for over 2 weeks. I couldn’t sleep properly, and my baby-sitter was a native Welsh woman. I remember so clearly thinking she looked creepy.’

Yixing giggles and Baekhyun can’t help but smile.

‘But she wasn’t creepy- she was a pixie. Just like you.’ Yixing beams at him again. ‘And she would sing me this lullaby to help me sleep. Later, after my parents came back, my mother learnt it from her when she realized how effective it was.’

_That’s so cool and beautiful,_ Baekhyun wants to say but he can’t.

‘It goes a little like this- my Welsh is probably horrible but uh- good thing you’re not native,’ Yixing chuckles sheepishly.

He clears his throat again and he reaches forward to gently brush through Baekhyun’s hair.

_‘Clyd a chynnes ydyw hon;_

_Breichiau mam sy'n dynn amdanat,_

_Cariad mam sy dan fy mron;_

_Ni chaiff dim amharu'th gyntun,_

_Ni wna undyn â thi gam;_

_Huna'n dawel, annwyl blentyn,_

_Huna'n fwyn ar fron dy fam.’_

Some languages had magic to them. A natural affinity to something beyond soundwaves, sylables, and tone.

_‘Huna'n dawel, heno, huna,_

_Huna'n fwyn, y tlws ei lun;_

_Pam yr wyt yn awr yn gwenu,_

_Gwenu'n dirion yn dy hun?_

_Ai angylion fry sy'n gwenu,_

_Arnat ti yn gwenu'n llon,_

_Tithau'n gwenu'n ôl dan huno,_

_Huno'n dawel ar fy mron?’_

But some voices had magic to them too.

_‘Paid ag ofni, dim ond deilen_

_Gura, gura ar y ddôr;_

_Paid ag ofni, ton fach unig_

_Sua, sua ar lan y môr;_

_Huna blentyn, nid oes yma_

_Ddim i roddi iti fraw;_

_Gwena'n dawel yn fy mynwes._

_Ar yr engyl gwynion draw.’_

Maybe that was what drew magical creatures to Yixing. There was a quality that went past the realm of soundwaves, brushing over the realm governed by the Fates, the Moon, and the Unknown.

But it didn’t explain how or why the air around them seemed to be glimmering in different colours. Soft gold to pale lavender to a diluted orange-

Baekhyun falls asleep surrounded in colours that radiate ancient magic.

 

 

 

 

  1. **Make to leave, and if they follow, congratulations! You have yourself a ~~unicorn~~ magizoologist **



 

Baekhyun spends a very odd day being shuttled around. He has to think hard when he realizes that today was day 20- meaning it was the end of whatever this AAA mission was. In Baekhyun’s honest opinion, nothing had changed, maybe except to further establish his inability to control his pixie-dust around Yixing and how every time he saw the magizoologist, his heart sort of broke a little.

‘Are you purposefully misdirecting me so that I don’t bump into Yixing?’ Baekhyun asks in a deadpan as he’s literally lifted up by Chanyeol and Jongin. _Huh, who knew the light fixtures had so much detail? Is this the kind of thing you noticed if you’re tall?_

‘We have no idea what you’re talking about,’ Jongin smiles beatifically from somewhere near his shins.

Baekhyun is pretty sure someone just went weak-kneed at the sight of it down the hallway.

‘Also I don’t think you guys actually need to you know, _lift me_ like this- I’m perfectly capable of walking on my own?’ Baekhyun crosses his arms. Honestly, he’s a little offended that neither of his two captors seemed to be remotely struggling with his weight.

‘Eh- aesthetics,’ Chanyeol replies with a shrug.

Baekhyun wants to argue but they’re out of the building now and away from a majority of the crowd.

‘This is dumb you guys,’ Baekhyun comments, eyes closed as he soaks up the sun. ‘Yixing isn’t even here? He’s doing his under-study thing outside the city.’

Both Jongin and Chanyeol halt abruptly. Baekhyun can literally feel them violently gesturing to each other, mouthing their words.

‘Well- if that’s the case.’

Baekhyun is put down on the ground and he sort of misses being that high up but it was good to have his feet on the ground again.

‘What were you planning on doing anyways? Throw me into some shed and hope no one saw me?’

‘Of course not- Sehun said we at least need to think of a toilet so we were planning on taking you to the gymnasium?’ Jongin explains.

Baekhyun fights the urge to face-slam into the nearest lamp-post.

‘Right well- this is no longer necessary and I’m glad of it,’ Baekhyun stretches his arms over his head, ignoring the expressions on Jongin and Chanyeol’s faces. ‘I’m gonna head back to the dorms- need to submit a report tomorrow.’

‘Okay hyung,’ Jongin says, looking once more like a Rococo painting, with sunlit leaves behind him, and the wind ruffling his hair in a way that seemed oddly in slow-motion.

Baekhyun waves them goodbye and starts walking back to the dorms. He doesn’t get very far when an unusual sound distracts him momentarily and he just about has enough time to brace himself when a Chamrosh pup flies out of the nearby bushes and collides with his chest, letting out a muffled squawk echoed by Baekhyun.

‘Woah-!’

The pup, slightly bigger than the last time Baekhyun saw it with its siblings, struggles against his chest for a moment before latching on to the pouch-pocket of his hoodie.

‘Hey pup,’ Baekhyun immediately curls his arms under the pup, giving it support. ‘Did you fly out of your nest? Got lost?’

Baekhyun worriedly looks past the bush the pup had burst out of, wondering if the larger parents were close by, ready to maybe maul him for taking their pup. The parents knew Baekhyun but that didn’t mean they wouldn’t be cautious and protective of their brood.

The woods where they were being housed wasn’t too far from this part of the campus grounds, so it was possible that the pup followed a change in the draft of wind and got carried away from its region.

‘Let’s take you back yeah?’

The pup clacks its beaks as though in response and Baekhyun scratches it under its (now) small beak.

Baekhyun can only hope the Chamrosh parents will still remember him and won’t fly out at him, especially as he’s alone and without Yixing next to him.

It takes about 15 minutes for Baekhyun to reach the slightly secluded wooded area and the pup that now took to nesting inside his pocket seems to recognize the place.

‘Mum! Dad! I brought back a pup!’ Baekhyun calls out, knowing that the approach to any magical creature was to make your presence known, to establish that you weren’t there to hunt them or attack them. Baekhyun walks deeper into the woods, knowing that the Chamrosh pack nested closer to the older and taller trees towards the center of the small wooded area. Baekhyun hasn’t been here since that one time where he was introduced to the pack so he’s surprised to see a small tent set up near the clearing close by the nesting tree.

‘Did Yixing set up camp here to watch over you guys?’ Baekhyun asks the pup as it takes a moment to struggle out of the hoodie pocket and lands a little clumsily on its paws. It trots over to the tent, jumping and stretching its wings out a little, letting out quick successions of chirps.

From both the tree and inside the tent his chirps are echoed and from within the tent more than half of the brood of pups burst out. Baekhyun grins to himself as he watches the pups clamber over each other, welcoming back their sibling.

He nearly jumps in shock when one of the parents gracefully leaps down from the nesting tree, going over to check on the brood. Baekhyun realizes that the parents were on the higher branches of the tree all along and were probably just observing him from the heights. He sort of waves awkwardly at the other Chamrosh.

He’s about to turn back around, because he really had that report to finish, when a tearing sound catches his attention.

Yixing was pretty easy going about his possessions and didn’t mind damages on his clothes (or being) when it came to magical creatures. But Baekhyun spies what looks like textbooks inside the tent. A little panicked because academic textbooks were expensive as fuck, Baekhyun trots over to the tent to rescue the books. The tent is small but there’s a half-curled up futon to the side, a night-lamp, a sturdy canvas bag Baekhyun has seen Yixing carry a few times, and a few canteens of water. Waving away one of the pups that rolled about the tent floor next to the stack of books, Baekhyun quickly gathers them into his arms.

He’s wondering whether or not he should just take them with him, and text Yixing about it, or stow them away into the futon and tie _that_ up properly as he quickly scans the books for damage. Just a few torn pages here and there, with some scratches down the covers of a few. He’s thinking of maybe taking them with him when he comes to the last book.

A very familiar looking book. A book he saw _exactly_ 20 days ago.

“ _How to Catch a Unicorn.”_

An odd feeling creeps up his back as he drops the rest of the books, concentrating on the flat, almost square book in his hands. There was no doubt. This was the exact same book Kris had held in his (large) hands as he and the rest of the AAA practically emotionally blackmailed him into their crazy antics.

Of course it hadn’t made sense at the time. But now it almost felt startlingly clear and when Yixing appears in the clearing behind him, Baekhyun isn’t even remotely surprised anymore.

The Chamrosh seem to pick up on the drastic change in his mood and magic, the pups scampering away to their parents near the base of the nesting tree. Yixing himself, who was carrying his usual duffel bag over one shoulder, a surprised expression on his face that is quickly replaced with apprehension the moment he spots the book in Baekhyun’s hands.

Speaking of the book, Baekhyun chucks it down on the ground, causing both the Chamrosh and Yixing to wince.

‘You-‘

Baekhyun can’t exactly process his words just yet.

Yixing drops his duffel bag as he awkwardly shuffles forward, making himself shorter than his actual height.

And it _screams_ guilt.

‘Were you behind this?’ Baekhyun demands, pointing at the book. ‘You knew, didn’t you?’

Yixing blinks rapidly, mouth opening and closing, but no words come out.

‘You-‘ there’s nothing comical but Baekhyun lets out a weird laugh. ‘-were you just playing with me?’

His voice cracks.

‘You knew and you were just toying with me- weren’t you?’

‘No!’ Yixing finds his voice, shaking his head almost violently. ‘No! No I wasn’t- what do you mean- I- _playing_ with you?!‘

‘If you knew- if you didn’t _know_ \- I don’t understand- why would you do this?’ Baekhyun demands, proud that his voice isn’t cracking again, proud that he’s keeping away the tears. ‘Why did you- why did you tell the others to do this-‘

‘I didn’t tell them,’ Yixing states firmly, desperately, but there’s a strange change of expression on his face- he’s still pleading; but there’s a smile trying to grow on his lips and it’s doing nothing to placate Baekhyun. ‘I didn’t tell them to do anything- I swear to Fates, I didn’t tell them anything they just- Kris-ge and Chanyeollie were just teasing me- they just- they knew how I felt- how I feel about you-‘

Baekhyun feels as though a bucket of cold water was just poured over his head.

‘You what-‘

‘They-‘ Yixing huffs out a short chuckle, pausing to stand in front of Baekhyun. ‘-they knew, that I’ve been in love with you for years- that I’m- I’m _such a fool-_ ‘

There’s a suspicious ringing in Baekhyun’s ears. He briefly shakes his head as though to clear his mind before clearing his throat.

‘Hahaha- wanna repeat that again?’

‘It’s just-‘ Yixing sighs, looking down as he carefully reaches for the sleeves of Baekhyun’s sweater. ‘I was losing you- I just…I knew it. I didn’t know…if it was something I did or said I just- I couldn’t lose you. I’m sorry, I was selfish.’

‘This doesn’t explain anything,’ Baekhyun whispers, his hands statue-like as Yixing’s fingers gently brush over them. ‘I don’t understand anything.’

His voice cracks again and Baekhyun doesn’t try to stop it.

‘Baekkie,’ Yixing looks up carefully and Baekhyun, once again, cannot look away. ‘Please- please tell me you feel the same.’

Baekhyun wonders, for a wild moment, if he’s strayed into some strange virtual reality- or a parallel world.

‘I still don’t understand.’ Is all Baekhyun is capable of saying. ‘What are you talking about?’

Was there some sort of simulation glitch?

‘Kris-ge and the others uh- the AAA-‘

_What the actual fuck-_

‘-it’s um their name I guess,’ Yixing looks superbly uncomfortable (and handsome but now was not the time), ‘But they showed up in my room a few weeks ago-‘

This was starting to sound horrifyingly familiar.

‘-and they said- they said they wanted me to be happy-‘

Was this rehearsed?!

‘-and that-uh, I should give myself a chance-‘

‘-at happiness,’ Baekhyun completes his sentence. ‘They said the same thing to me.’

Yixing bites the inside of his cheek, looking nervous but also a little relieved that Baekhyun knew what he was talking about.

‘I said I didn’t- that I didn’t approve. And it was- it was such a dumb idea-‘ Baekhyun nods mutely in agreement, only just aware that Yixing had taken his hands into his own. ‘-and I wanted to just,- just completely stop it-‘

‘-but you didn’t think it would…it would matter because it’s not like it would work anyways,’ Baekhyun completes his sentence again.

Yixing nods.

‘I figured that they… _spoke_ to you too,’ Yixing says quietly. ‘And…I didn’t think…I just thought that you-‘

A sense of horror floods Baekhyun. Yixing knew that Baekhyun had been approached by the AAA, he knew what they were doing. Baekhyun feels guilt, and an overwhelming realization that this was exactly how Yixing must have felt.

‘I thought you knew and that you didn’t know how to tell me- I just- I was scared to ask because I love being with you and I just-‘ Yixing pauses, ‘I felt like I was losing you- and maybe this way, after this, I could finally uh-‘ now _his_ voice cracks, ‘-could finally move on.‘

Baekhyun wants to cry.

Not a pretty cry.

Like a _wail and leak from my eyes nose mouth and hyperventilate_ kind of cry.

But at the same time he is filled with a rage of feelings that covers every single emotion.

‘This is _so stupid-!_ ’ Baekhyun screeches, pixie dust exploding about him in bright silver and pink.

‘Baek-!’ Yixing looks he’s about to cry, making himself smaller. The Chamrosh move about restlessly.

‘This is wrong!’ Baekhyun roars- ‘You’re not allowed to say that and be sad and cute! _I’m_ supposed to be sad and cute!’

‘What-‘

‘I really like you,’ Baekhyun squeezes their hands tightly. ‘In fact, I am _stupidly_ in love with you!’

Yixing’s expression goes from shocked to scared to happy to confused and back to shocked in a span of a second and repeats all over again.

Stepping up towards the magizoologist, Baekhyun asks in a tone that is bordering angry, ‘And I am _exhausted_ of this whole thing- this part meaning me being stupid and _you_ being stupid and us being _stupid_ -‘ he takes a few calming breaths. ‘-I will deal with the fucking AAA in due time but before that I want to make things clear! I am in love with you yes?’

Yixing nods uncertainly, a smile forming on his face, his eyes turning into funny crescents.

‘And you’re in love with me yes?’

‘Yes! Yes yes ye-!’

‘So that means I’m going to kiss you-‘

Baekhyun doesn’t have to complete his statement or make anything clearer because Yixing huffs out a laugh before leaning down and kissing him mid-sentence.

Yixing does that a lot.

Laugh as he presses kisses upon kisses on Baekhyun’s face, arms winding around him and holding him so close Baekhyun can feel his laughter against his own chest.

‘We’re really stupid-‘ Baekhyun manages to giggle out, still trying to be reprimanding and upset but he’s laughing too much, too busy falling into the sweet warmth of Yixing’s magic that makes the pixie dust floating around them shimmer in soft pink hues.

‘I’m sorry,’ Yixing mumbles against his cheek.

‘I’m sorry too,’ Baekhyun replies, taking Yixing’s hands in his again.

‘Don’t kill the others- they were just trying to be supportive.’

‘No killing,’ Baekhyun nods.

Yixing gives him a suspicious look before kissing his nose.

‘I’m- I’m suspicious but I can’t think right now-‘ Yixing only manages to say before Baekhyun grins widely, jumping a little to wind his arms around Yixing’s shoulders.

Kissing him soundly Baekhyun pulls away a little just a little, freeing one hand and extending a pinky towards Yixing who interlocks his pinky immediately and kisses it.

‘No need to think- just trust me.’

 

 

 

*

 

 

Baekhyun smiles innocently, waving with his usual enthusiasm (though one handed) as the AAA traipse in.

‘Over here!’ he calls the tall bunch over. They smile in return though not before looking extremely delighted as they take in the whole picture.

Baekhyun is sitting next to Yixing, both of them with a few of the Chamrosh pups gathered about, waiting for them to give them bits of shredded chicken Yixing had specially prepared. But it’s not just this that gives the AAA cause to gleefully high-five each other but rather the arm around Baekhyun’s waist and maybe the very happy and content expressions on their faces.

‘Good morning,’ Kris grins, very pleased with himself as he waves at the others around the table.

‘It is,’ Yixing smiles brightly.

Jongin, fulfilling his role as living painting, stretches over the table in a picturesque manner as he takes Baekhyun’s free hand in his and says, ‘I’m so happy that you finally-‘

‘-got dicked dow-‘ Sehun begins to say but is shoved away by Zitao who quietly reaches over to pet one of the pups. With a huff, Sehun goes and takes his seat next to Lu Han who pats his head fondly, making space for the lanky Wind Dryad.

Baekhyun sees Chanyeol begrudgingly hand over a wad of cash and Baekhyun will deal with that later but right now he has bigger fish to fry.

‘Sehun-ah, come over here for a moment,’ Baekhyun says, calling over the Dryad who pretends to mull over the invitation before shuffling over on the bench.

‘I would like to extend my thanks to the AAA,’ Baekhyun announces rather solemnly, catching the attention of the others around the table. Even Minseok and Jongdae stop being cute and look over at them. Kyungsoo on the other hand, eyes him suspiciously. Yixing looks a bit confused but doesn’t say anything, smiling brightly at the aforementioned group.

‘To show my gratitude, I would like to offer you these muffins, baked by yours truly based on my mother’s family recipe.’

Their eyes light up as Baekhyun picks up a large Tupperware of muffins from next to his seat and hands it over to the AAA.

‘I hope you will enjoy this,’ Baekhyun beams.

They dig in immediately-except for Kris who takes a moment, eyeing him with slightly narrowed eyes that Baekhyun blissfully ignores, reaching over to take a muffin himself and biting off the top. This seems to do the trick and Kris tucks into the plump and free muffin.

‘It’s so good!’ Jongin says with a full-mouth which does nothing to mar his good looks. Chanyeol is on his second as Zitao and Sehun also praise the baked treat.

Baekhyun only beams in response.

It’s almost as though the entire table was holding their breath and they let go of it when nothing drastic happens. Kyungsoo sends him a questioning look that Baekhyun replies to with a small wink.

‘So- what’s on everyone’s schedule today?’ Yixing asks, unaware of the strange tension.

They continue to eat their breakfast, talking amongst themselves, the tension dissipating entirely. It’s towards the end when Junmyeon arrives, looking a little hassled.

‘What’s up?’ Kris asks almost immediately.

‘Oh it’s nothing,’ Junmyeon shakes his head, ‘It’s just I think I mislabeled some stuff in my store.’

‘Are you missing something,’ Baekhyun asks instantly, causing Kyungsoo, Lu Han, Jongdae, and Minseok to all stare at him, eyes widening.

‘Yeah, actually,’ Junmyeon continues, unaware of the situation as he settles his breakfast tray and begins to dig into his oatmeal. ‘It’s random though? Just a hair removal tonic.’

Jongdae and Minseok both choke spectacularly on their morning coffee.

‘You guys okay?’ Yixing asks worriedly.

There’s a loud snort and cackling from Lu Han who keels over the table, slapping the surface, overcome with hysterics.

Junmyeon looks around confused, eyeing Kyungsoo for answers because he’s obviously the only trustworthy person there. But Kyungsoo just shakes his head before mysteriously wriggling his eyebrows and nodding subtly.

‘What’s going on-?’ Kris asks, looking confused, a frown forming on his-

Hacking on his oatmeal, Junmyeon’s eyes widen comically.

‘ _WHERE ARE YOUR EYEBROWS?!_ ’

 

 

 

 

*

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> (Author’s Notes)
> 
> Baekhyun stole Junmyeon’s hair removal tonic and charmed it so that when consumed, it would make you lose your eyebrows for exactly 20 days. He made it so that it wouldn’t effect himself, which is why he could eat the muffins without any problem =D  
> Anyways.  
> This has been in the making since LAST YEAR  
> IT’S BEEN 80% DONE FOR AGES BUT I’VE NEVER HAD THE TIME TO COMPLETE IT I’M SO SORRY  
> But yes. This is the last update of the series. I just really wanted to write a baekxing because by god do I love baekhyun’s interaction with Yixing.  
> Actually I just love baekhyun’s interaction with everyone  
> He’s such a blessing and a sweetheart I love him   
> This came out less comical and more sad (at first) than I thought it would be  
> Also a lot long longer  
> But yea  
> I hope you enjoyed this!!  
> Also, Baekhyun’s magic is so compatible to Yixing’s that in contact with it, turns a soft pink. Pixies can’t sense their own magic, so Baekhyun can’t sense this, but instead it manifests into a coloured form. Something Baekhyun should know but doesn’t- and this is why Kyungsoo, and literally everyone else just sort of look at Baekhyun with exasperation. Pixie dust is just sparkly, but it meets a super compatible magic, one that is *coughs* destined, it manifests in colour.   
> Yixing doesn’t know about it because he’s too invested in magical creatures. He only knows the pixie dust is a sort of defense mechanism so he used to be really hurt when Baekhyun’s reaction was to explode in pixie dust. He even had near-crying breakdowns as he vented his heart out to Junmyeon and Kris who both are SO DONE.  
> Baekhyun will tell Yixing about it later and the latter will be exceptionally pleased- delayed, but pleased.  
> PS- Baekhyun’s dad’s pixie dust turned teal when he met Yerin.   
> The lullaby Yixing sings is called "Suo Gan"  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gem2miKab1A  
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suo_G%C3%A2n  
> its really pretty!!


End file.
